SNP Health Priorities - Voice Coaching?

Scotland already has a two-tier health service of course - people can wait three years for a cataract operation under the NHS or if they have the money, pay £2,500 to go private and have their eyesight restored within days!

But how can the NHS struggle to provide even the most basic services while hospitals provide language therapists to voice coach trans people who feel their voices don't match 'the person they have become'. 

See post below dated 23 May 2022 and article from The Times by Dan Barker.  

Scotland's Health Priorities (May 23, 2022)

I'm not at all clear about the circumstances in which a person's voice can make them feel 'unsafe', but it seems rather odd that such a service is now freely available on the NHS.

Especially when people are struggling to access even basic services like seeing your local GP or NHS dentist, calling an ambulance, being seen at A&E, having a cataract operation, or a knee/hip replacement and so on.

   

SNP Priorities - Basic Services vs 'Trans Healthcare' (October 20, 2022)

I do wonder about the SNP's health priorities - basic services and GP funding are being cut while 'trans healthcare' receives a major boost.

So where is all this extra money, a 29% increase, being spent?

SNP Health Priorities (January 24, 2022)

I came across this ScotGov announcement about trans health care recently and if I remember correctly the existing £7 million NHS budget is being boosted by an extra £2 million - a whopping increase of 29%. 

Other aspects of NHS health care could do with waiting times being improved, of course, so I'll be interested to see what additional investment Scottish Ministers is making to cut waiting times for cataract operations, knee and hip replacements etc etc.

An extra £2 million would pay for the best part of a 1,000 cataract operations, for example, at a time when Scots are being forced to consider paying privately because of the lengthy NHS waiting times.  

 

The other thing that jumped out to me is why is the Green minister Lorna Slater quoted - what has this got to do with the minister for Green Skills, Circular Economy and Biodiversity?

  

https://www.gov.scot/news/supporting-nhs-gender-identity-services/

£9 million to improve gender identity healthcare.

A framework to improve access to and delivery of NHS gender identity services, backed by £9 million investment has been published.

The NHS Gender Identity Services Strategic Action Framework fulfils commitments in the Programme for Government and Bute House Agreement to publish a plan to improve gender identity healthcare in Scotland by the end of 2021. Actions in the framework include:

• improving waiting times and providing new multidisciplinary models of care
• supporting people who are waiting to access services
• developing national standards for services and improving data collection.

Public Health Minister Maree Todd said:

“This ambitious framework demonstrates our commitment to improve access to and delivery of gender identity healthcare.

“We want to reduce the unacceptable waits to access gender identity services and provide sustainable services and support.

“I am determined that through working with people using these services, organisations representing trans people, clinical groups and NHS Boards we will transform these services and improve the lives of trans people living in Scotland.”

Scottish Government Minister and Scottish Green Party Co-Leader Lorna Slater said:

“Lengthy waiting times for trans people has a serious impact on their mental health. Protecting their right to essential healthcare is a vital part of our commitment to advancing equality for LGBTI people.

"This framework will improve services for a community that is often marginalised. We must continue to include the voices and expertise of trans people, as well as clinicians, academics, NHS Boards and LGBTI organisations in the work to improve these services.”

Deputy Chief Medical Officer Professor Nicola Steedman said:

“Referrals to gender identity services have increased over the last few years and so too have waiting times. Despite the dedication of NHS staff, we know that some people are currently waiting over three and a half years from referral to first appointment.

“This work will allow us to improve waiting times and ensure gender identity healthcare is person centred, sustainable and built on the principles of Realistic Medicine."

Scottish Trans Alliance Manager Vic Valentine said:

“We warmly welcome this strategic action framework, which alongside crisis funding also provides the foundations for making long lasting, significant change to gender identity healthcare that is so desperately needed. Trans people deserve to live happy, healthy lives, and to have access to the healthcare we need to make this possible. We look forward to contributing to work to transform these services, and in particular to the Scottish Government ensuring that trans people truly are at the heart of decisions made to do so – something that is absolutely crucial to making sure that this framework delivers on its aims.” 

Scotland's Health Priorities (May 23, 2022)

I'm not at all clear about the circumstances in which a person's voice can make them feel 'unsafe', but it seems rather odd that such a service is now freely available on the NHS.

Especially when people are struggling to access even basic services like seeing your local GP or NHS dentist, calling an ambulance, being seen at A&E, having a cataract operation, or a knee/hip replacement and so on.

   

Scotland's Failing Health Service, the SNP and Porkie Pies (January 19, 2022)

 

As 2021 drew to a close Nicola Sturgeon appeared on the BBC's Andrew Marr programme and used the example of cataract operations to justify why Scotland has far fewer NHS beds these days.

The First Minister argued that for the likes of cataract operations people spend less time in hospital that they did years ago.

But this is a deliberate deception, dissembling nonsense, a blatant lie in plain language - because the real problem is that people can't get cataract operations done on the NHS these days.

In Glasgow, for example, there is a year's wait just to get on the waiting list, followed by another potential two year wait to have your eyesight finally restored.

Meanwhile if you have £2,500 to £3,500 to spare, you can have the operation done privately in a matter of days and  Covid isn't being used as a convenient excuse - in fact business is booming!

NB - the SNP have been running Scotland's health service for the past 14 years.